Day 13: Two Minute Warning
The two minute warning in football stops the clock at the two minute mark of both the second and fourth quarter, and gives each team a free timeout and a heads up that they’re almost running out of time before halftime or the end of the game. Teams that are well coached generally have a different plan, and different tempo for that last two minutes so that they can effectively use the time left before the half ends. Other teams play with no urgency and squander the opportunity, or decide to play it safe because they’re too scared to make a mistake (a mistake itself, I’d say).
Day 13 was my two-minute warning for my 30 Days — it’s time to finish out this half strong, and go into the second half with a plan for victory.
First things first, it’s time to take stock of what has happened in these last 13 days, habit-by-habit:
1. Eat no more than 3 meals per day without snacking.
So I the reason that I haven’t gone into great detail on this habit with a daily post is because it’s always been more of a struggle for me to actually eat 3 meals in a day than it has been to keep from eating more. And with that comment, many of you may be thinking, “Man, I hate you.”
Eating too much hasn’t really been an issue for me in the past. I’ve never struggled with my weight, but I’ve often weighed less than I want to. For the last few years, I’ve been trying to put ON more weight rather than lose it, and 30 Days of Discipline addresses this question directly:
If I’m skinny and trying to gain weight can I eat more than 3 meals per day? Yes. Skinny people trying to gain (muscular) weight need to eat a lot of food. Eating more than 3 meals a day is a must to gain weight. This is acceptable.
For the last 2 weeks, I’ve been eating more than I usually do. I have a much stronger appetite and less desire for junk food/candy/etc. and that’s because I NEED that fat, protein, and fiber to sustain me through the day.
2. Wake up at 5am every day for 30 days.
I’ve been able to nail this habit every day so far, by setting my alarm for 4:51am. Why that time? One involuntary snooze button slap or alarm malfunction would get me to 4:59 before my next alarm goes off, giving me a minute to get out of bed if it comes to that. So far, it hasn’t, and I haven’t had to worry about it. But… like the Boy Scouts and Bruce Willis in the Last Boy Scout say: “Be prepared, son. That’s my motto. Be prepared.”
3. Take cold showers every day for 30 days.
I dreaded this one the most in looking at this 30 days idea. Strangely enough, I love my cold showers now. If you’re trying these out, here’s the key: Don’t ease your way in, it’s like going to the beach or the pool: You just gotta dive in… it warms up.
4. No masturbating or internet porn for 30 days.
5. Do 100 pushups, 100 sit-ups and 100 body squats every day for 30 days.
This is the one that I’m most excited about because it’s the one where improvement is most clear and measurable. If you remember back to my earlier posts, the goal is to get to 100 of each exercise in a row without stopping, and also to finish the Hundreds in a faster time each day then the day before. So each day I’m recording the time and the max number of reps that I did on the first set.
Day 1 Results — Pushups: 30 without stopping on the first set, Air Squats: completed 100 on first set, and Situps: 40 without stopping on the first set = TOTAL TIME OF 31 MINUTES.
Day 7 Results — Pushups: 42 without stopping on the first set, Air Squats: completed 100 on first set, and Situps: 85 without stopping on the first set = TOTAL TIME OF 17 MINUTES 57 SECONDS.
Day 13/Current Results — Pushups: 62 without stopping on the first set, Air Squats: completed 100 on first set, and Situps: completed 100 on first set = TOTAL TIME OF 11 MINUTES 23 SECONDS.
So you can see that there’s been huge improvement in this area over the last 2 weeks of the program. When I started this program, I wasn’t in amazing shape but I was in pretty decent shape as someone who ran 3–4 miles, 2–4 times a week. However, while I was running, I was doing little to nothing else: very few pushups on sporadic occasions and no abs.. basically ever. But sticking with it, day after day, makes a difference. You can change, get in shape, accomplish your goals if you just stick with it.
6. Dress for success every single day for 30 days
This one hasn’t been too hard for most of the week due to occupational requirements, but it has forced me to be more thoughtful about how I look in a good way on the other occasions where I’m going out on a date with my wife, hanging out with people, going to church, or just going to get groceries. I’ve mostly been a t-shirt and shorts kind of guy, just tossing on whatever is at hand — usually one of my favorite tank-tops, and some cargo shorts — but this habit has forced me to clean up my act in a very good way. It’s made me realize that I’ve been a pretty big slob in the past with how I have presented myself, and made me want to take care of myself a little bit more, not for the sake of vanity, but to more accurately represent what I stand for. I don’t want to be about appearances, but at the same time, a lot of people ARE about appearances, so it’s better not to turn them off before they give you a chance.
7. Maintain and complete a “to-do” list every single day for 30 days.
This has been a great addition to my life. Having a to-do list, and the requirement of writing your to-do list the night before for the next day helps me get off to a sprinting start in the morning.
8. Every day for 30 days you must keep correct posture, stand up straight, chest and head held high, and make eye contact with everyone.
This has been something that’s been hard for me in the past. I slouch and have always had bad posture. However, having it as a habit in my 30 Days has made me focus, think about it more often, and actually do it more often. My posture still is pretty bad, but it’s getting better.
9. Every day for 30 days your answers to yes or no questions are “yes” or “no.” Excuses and explanations do not follow your answer. For other questions you must have a definite answer.
This one hasn’t been too tough, and I feel like I’m doing this one pretty well. I actually prefer this — less talking, let’s get to the point… Not always appropriate for all areas of life: Try to give your wife/significant other more than 1 word answers, it’s just nicer.
10. Every day for 30 days you must keep a notebook and pen with you.
I’ve tried using all kinds of different apps to collect my thoughts, but I’ve found that even when I try to stick with one, it’s just a hassle to wake up phone, unlock phone, navigate home screen, find app, tap app, find appropriate tab, start typing, backspace because fat thumbs, get distracted by notification from other app, get sidetracked by other app, sleep phone, remember that didn’t finish collecting thoughts, wake phone…. repeat… forever.
Yes, I’m probably doing it wrong, and I’m not maximizing the benefits of some amazing technology… But man, just give me some pen and paper. With my 30 days, I’ve been using a good old fashioned notebook, and it is one of the foundational elements, along with 5am wakeups.
11. Work towards your very definite goal.
You’re reading that work. Comments, criticism, and any thoughts are much appreciated.
12. You can take a lazy Sunday/Saturday morning and afternoon, but Sunday/Saturday evening is used to prepare for the week ahead.
So crucial. So necessary. More on this in Day 14.
13. Every day for 30 days you will spend time reading the Bible (4 chapters minimum) and time in prayer.
Another foundational element of this 30 days for me. I wouldn’t be able to get through my days without having time with God. With what I believe, the Bible is the inspired word of God. So I don’t wait to hear God’s word audibly speaking to me, I just pick up the Bible and I read his words inside. Spending time reading my Bible is spending time hearing from God. I’ve been spending my mornings reading about David in 1st and 2nd Samuel. Here and there, I’ve tossed in a couple chapters from Ecclesiastes and Hebrews but it’s mostly all been about David and later, King David.
As for prayer, it’s a chance for me to talk with God. I don’t need a middleman or go-between, he says come to me directly. My time spent in prayer in the past hasn’t been particularly thoughtful or intentional, it’s often been just haphazard and unplanned. Not to say that that is always a bad thing — there aren’t really rules, requirement, or rigidity — but in terms of having meaningful time with the one who made me, it’s been much better to have time set aside for that each day.
14. Every day for 30 days you will perform an act of service or sacrifice for someone else.
I wish I could say that I have been 100% with this goal like the others. I’ve had days where I see an opportunity to do something for someone else and I do it and remember it, and then I’ve had days where I’m not sure if I did it or not.
Another part of me is ok with not being able to definitively say I’ve nailed this goal. The last thing I want to do is to sacrifice for someone else or do an act of service for someone else so that I can successfully check it off my list. I don’t want to think about it, instead, I want it to flow out of my life naturally. I know that I could probably say that about most of the things on this list, but for some reason, the idea of this goal has been rubbing me the wrong way these last few days. I’ve kept it on my list of goals, but it’s something that I’ve taken off of my checklist. We’ll come back to this in coming days.
All in all, these first two weeks of 30 Days have been an incredible blessing for my life. In terms of where I started, I’ve seen improvements in my life that I didn’t think possible in such a short time. I’ll try to share some stories about those in the coming days so you can see what you can do with a plan and a little determination.
Day 14 is another day of rest, but I’ve already done a little reflection here, so tomorrow will be a bit of a look forward to what is to come in the second half of my 30 Days.
I hope you’re ready, because I:
___________________________________________________________________
Quote of the Day
The real man smiles in trouble, gathers strength from distress, and grows brave by reflection.
~Thomas Paine
___________________________________________________________________
Links to Past Episodes/Resources:
Introduction Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6 Day 7 Day 8 Day 9 Day 10
Manfield’s Book of Manly Men: An Utterly Invigorating Guide to Being Your Most Masculine Self
If you have any feedback, please send me a message or leave it on my Facebook page: Thirty Days. This is a new project and I’d love to hear your thoughts. It is a tremendous encouragement to know that someone is reading this. Encouragement, comments AND criticism are welcome.
